Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
WARNING: People with strong feelings about vaccines and travel (especially combinations of the two) may experience a range of emotions when reading about the World Health Organization’s thoughts on vaccination passports.
Plus, could Austin become the next new mega-hub for airlines?
Those are some of today’s travel headlines that I thought you, too, may find interesting.
WHO: Now Is Not the Time for Vaccination Passports
The World Health Organization isn’t quite yet on board with vaccination passports. Perceived social status and entitlement concerns are, apparently, the root of the problem.
Fast Company’s Ruth Reader writes:
[There] are a few problems with vaccine passports, and the World Health Organization has voiced its distaste for the concept.
The main concern is that vaccine distribution is not globally equitable and vaccine passports could create social stratification.
“At the present time the use of certification of vaccination as a requirement for travel is not advised because quite simply vaccination is just not available enough around the world and is not available certainly on an equitable basis,” said Michael Ryan, head of the WHO’s health-emergencies program, at a press conference.
The organization says that it thinks providing vaccinated people with an official certification is valuable for public health purposes, but that vaccination should not entitle a person to more freedoms than an unvaccinated person.
Should I send WHO a postcard? 😉
AUS-ome?
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) in Texas’ capital city could be the next big thing.
Simple Flying’s James Pearson notes:
With 9.3 million seats added between 2011 and 2019, Austin is on a roll. It did even better on a percentage basis. With 81% more seats, it was the US’ third fast-growing airport, behind Orlando Sanford and Tampa St Pete but ahead of Charleston, San Jose, and Dallas Love. Austin ended 2019 as the US’ 33rd-largest airport, up by eight places over 2011.
Given Austin’s exploding popularity over the past decade, it’s not entirely surprising.
Elsewhere:
Carnival CEO Believes Cruise Industry Won’t Bounce Back Until 2023
Improving air travel demand brings Delta close to financial turnaround
Allegedly drunk Alaska Airlines passenger faces $250,000 fine for behavior he claims not to remember
Featured image: ©iStock.com/Maria Vonotna
Advertiser Disclosure: Eye of the Flyer, a division of Chatterbox Entertainment, Inc., is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. Some or all of the card offers that appear on the website are from advertisers. Compensation may impact how and where card products appear on the site. This site does not include all card companies or all available card offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed, or approved by any of these entities. Some of the links on this page are affiliate or referral links. We may receive a commission or referral bonus for purchases or successful applications made during shopping sessions or signups initiated from clicking those links.
Responses are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
Being against vaccine passports because “vaccination should not entitle a person to more freedoms than an unvaccinated person” is a strange position for the WHO. It would be ridiculous if that was the WHO’s only issue with them. The article says the WHO is concerned about the fact that vaccinated people can still transmit the virus although the chances of a vaccinated person getting an infection serious enough to infect others is small. WHO is also concerned about forged documents. Forged documents or hacked health information systems are probably the biggest issues to solve to make vaccine passports acceptable “get out of Covid travel jail” cards.
Why would anyone think a Covid Passport was a status symbol? I’d be embarrassed to hold one, it be right up there with my I flunked 1st grade report card.
For once I agree with the WHO. On the flip side, people without passports are strolling across the US border, And yet, those of us with the means to fly to/from Mexico. are treated like plague candidates.
WHO’s rationale about inequitable distribution is ridiculous. You could say the same thing about any medical procedure. What about the existing “International Certificate of Vaccination” i.e. the “yellow card.” I have one of those with my typhoid and yellow fever vaccine info. Nearly every country in Africa and many in Asia won’t let you in without it. How is a COVID vaccine certificate any different?
“[WHO] says that it thinks providing vaccinated people with an official certification is valuable for public health purposes, but that vaccination should not entitle a person to more freedoms than an unvaccinated person.”
So…what else would you do with it, then? Tack it to your refrigerator with some magnets?
I agree with WHO but for a different reason. There are dozens of potential vaccines that exist, or will exist throughout the world. Each will have different efficacy, time between boosters, etc. All being tracked by individual governments. Trying to utilize and maintain this data in a worldwide database for issuing vaccine passports would be possible, but it would take years to develop and implement. Trying it in a hodgepodge simpler version will cause as many problems as it solves.
Agree Jeff. We need to shut down all air travel – domestic as well as international – until covid disappears from the Earth. How about if you and me set an example for the rest of humanity? You first.
UH, if that’s what you gleaned from my post, I need to work on my writing skills, or you need to work on reading comprehension, maybe a little of both. I plan to travel soon and comply with whatever rules exist(or don’t). I will be fully vaccinated in 2 weeks. Show me the accepted way to prove it, that is universally accepted around the world, or even among the various parts of each country. I’ll wait. I have no doubt something that is universally accepted can be created, it just won’t be soon.
And to be clear, I’m simply agreeing with WHO about not loving vaccine passports at this time. You know, the title of this article. I just don’t agree with their reasoning, but instead have my own reason.
Unfortunately I believe that the WHO’s ridiculous statements about inequality and the fact that we are in the state we are in now and linked. I think a lot of people used the pandemic as a way to force their political agendas on us, inequality being one of them. They thought they could make us all equal by closing airlines, shutting hotels and ending privilege. I just hope that the world sees through these outrageous statements by the WHO and doesn’t allow this type of thinking to become acceptable. Of course everyone should have enough resources to survive on but it’s perfectly OK for there to be some that have more than others.
As for Austin, it’s such a great city, it deserves the recognition!
We live in a true “Cancel Culture World”. Where everything is based on equality. Everyone must be exactly equal.
This seems to be a “screw the science” stance, and instead a “awww, shucks, we might hurt someone’s feelings” thing.
So, I am a physician. But, if I apply this logic, displaying my diplomas and licenses in my office is “elitism”. It might make someone else feel that they got passed over. Shoot, let’s have the high school dropout doing delicate procedures. Or the fitness trainer doing cardiac catheterizations. After all, we don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.
And now you see why my respect for the WHO gets a little bit lower each day. It was bad enough when they were singing the praises of China for being transparent and open back in January, 2020. And now this …
Enough said on the subject.
EdSparks58
Well said.
I believe in a vaccine passport. When I was traveling within the military we always had our vaccine record with us. This protected our follow service members and the countries residentance that we were traveling too. It also protected us from infections that the locals could spread to us when in country. We need to stop being a selfish nation and think about the bigger picture, aren’t we soppost to be an educated nation? What I’m seeing and hearing from these posts is proving the point that we are as stupid as the world sees us. When traveling throughout the world these countries welcomed use with open arms and with respect. Now a days they see use as selfish and disrespectful members of a society that is so self absorbed with itself. Learn follow travelers learn.
David B.
“I think it’s important to understand that you can’t have 100 percent security and then have 100 percent privacy and zero inconvenience. We’re going to have to make some choices as a society.” – Barack Obama
“Let me add, only a virtuous people are capable of freedom. As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” – Benjamin Franklin
“Any society that would give up a little liberty to gain a little security will deserve neither and lose both.” – Benjamin Franklin
Guess how I stand on the above passport issue.
Why is no one talking about the fact that the shot is NOT a vaccination. It’s an injection. Do some homework on the difference.
“Why is no one talking about the fact that the shot is NOT a vaccination. It’s an injection. Do some homework on the difference.”
Probably because there is not much to talk about. Strictly speaking, the only true vaccine was for smallpox, when the vaccine itself originally derived from cowpox pustules; hence the vac- root in vaccine, derived from the Latin word for cow/cattle. Generally speaking, vaccine has come to commonly mean any immunization given to humans or animals, to wit all the discussions calling it a vaccine are equally correct as you claim they are incorrect by calling it a vaccine. Just as aspirin, Xerox, Pyrex, Kleenex, Tupperware, Coke, and so many other words in our lexicon have lost their specific meaning, (much to the chagrin of their registered and/or trademarked brand owners,) and often represent any pain reliever, photocopier, glass labware/bakeware, facial tissue, reusable “burp seal” plastic food storage container, carbonated fountain drink, and so on, respectively.